Feeding the birds

By Paul Schnare

Last weekend my wife and I were sitting outside on our new patio enjoying the cool weather we were having. While we ate our late breakfast, we saw a squirrel checking us out as it sat on a limb of an oak tree.

We then heard an owl hoot at us. I was not sure what he or she was saying. I tried to hoot back, but that seemed to end the conversation.

Over the years we have seen up to 17 deer in the front yard. Marilyn loves to watch the little ones jump, kick and play with each other. Mother Doe just watches to make sure they don't get too rambunctious.

What we have not seen are very many songbirds. In order to change that, I decided to put up bird feeders in a position near the new patio. We could watch them from the patio or from our kitchen/living room window.

A variety of bird food to feed your backyard birds.Laura Simon

You will find all kinds of bird feed combinations on the market. They may include black oil sunflower, striped sunflower, hulled sunflower, millet, milo, corn, peanuts, safflower and various fruits. In addition, various suets are available. Some feeds require specialty feeders, while others can be placed in any kind of feeder.

I wanted to start simply with a double shepherds hook supporting a wooden feeder for black oil sunflower and suet. I chose black oil sunflower because it seems to be the feed that attracts a large variety of birds. You also can choose black oil sunflower hearts because there are no sunflower shells that fall to the ground when the birds feed. This eliminates a potential mess.

The suet holder on the feeder would attract woodpeckers and other clinging birds. So this feeder would serve a dual purpose.

I also wanted to attract finches, so I decided to include a finch feeder. The finch feeder is designed to hold the small thistle seed that finches love. The use of a regular bird feeder would result in a lot of wasted seed.

If I find that birds will come to the feeders, I can then establish other feeding stations that would attract martins and bluebirds. In addition, I could put up houses that would also give them shelter. This project will be one in progress.

Paul and Marilyn Schnare sit outside near the bird feeders in their backyard on Wednesday, Sept. 7, 2016.Laura Simon

One word of caution: Since I live in a wooded area, I have several squirrels who are neighbors. So when setting up bird feeders, I suggest you put squirrel baffles on the bird feeder pole or purchase squirrel-proof bird feeders. This may save you a lot of money in the long run because squirrels eat a lot more bird feed per month than do the birds. In addition, they seem to be a lot messier.

If you start feeding birds in your backyard, be sure to place the feeder where you can see it easily. I think you will be amply entertained.